Fall finishes left fans wondering

When a sports season comes to the end of the line it is often a very fine line that separates the champions from the rest.

I've seen almost 100 seasons draw to a close in my 30-plus years as a sports reporter and editor and 2012's fall campaign was no different than most. Unfortunately for Dispatch-area fans, there were no teams competing in a state title match or game but quite a few could have with a bit more luck.

Consider Cazenovia's field hockey team. The Lakers won the last two state titles in Class C and were in the hunt again this year before losing 4-0 to Section IV's Greene High School in the state quarterfinals. Had Cazenovia been in a different bracket, it might have made the finals as Greene won its semifinal game 4-0 then dominated its foe in the finals 7-0.

Consider Hamilton's boys soccer team. Last year's state champion in Class D played Poland even during the regular season but was upset in the semifinals by Watertown IHC. Poland won the Section III title over IHC then advanced to the state semifinals where it lost by a mere goal to Chazy, the team that won its title game 4-0.

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Consider Camden's girls soccer team. Coach Robert Wilson's Blue Devils reached the Section III semifinals for the first time this fall but was edged 2-1 by Jamesville-DeWitt. J-D went on to beat Whitesboro in the finals then advanced to the state finals.

Consider Cazenovia's football team, winners of the Section III title but a lopsided loser to Maine-Endwell in the state quarterfinals. Well, Maine-Endwell rolled over its semifinal foe Saturday and could very well repeat the feat in the state finals this coming weekend. That would leave Lakers fans to wonder if they have the second best team in the state.

The list could go on, and not just at the state level. Oneida's girls tennis team had its winningest season with a 22-0 start but fell in the Section III title match to J-D by a 5-2 count. Sage Hurta, the 2010 state cross country champion in Class D as a seventh grader was bidding to return to the state meet as a freshman after an injury-marred eighth grade campaign. She missed the cutoff by a few seconds this fall but will undoubtedly keep training to get back to what most people call "states."

Without a team competing Saturday, I still felt compelled to see a game. So I packed the car for a trip to Cortland to watch the Poland girls soccer team battle Chateaugay for the Class D state crown. I brought our three-year-old daughter, Mary, with me. It was the first time I'd brought a child to a state championship and we had a great time.

Maybe the next time we'll be lucky enough to be watching a Dispatch-area school.